Sign Language Poetry Performance
Rafael-Evitan Grombelka develops a new sign language poetry performance responding to Gunter Trube's role as a royal advisor in Akiko Hada's video opera The Fall of a Queen, or The Taste of Fruit to Come (1991). The work takes Trube's role as a starting point and expands it into its own sign language poetic perspective, reflecting and further exploring the political and linguistic hierarchies of the opera.
The performance also connects to Grombelka's earlier engagements with Trube's work, particulary Cinderella and Schnee. By translating material from video into live performance, the archival content is not only received but embodied, updated, and performatively renegotiated. At the same time, the work is an artistic commemoration of Gunter Trube, with whom Grombelka had both a personal and artistic connection.
Bio
Rafael-Evitan Grombelka is a Deaf performer, actor, and sign language interpreter. In sign language poetry he combines facial expression, gesture, and signs to express his inner thoughts and inspire his audience. He advocates for the visibility of German Sign Language and regularly works in theater, film, and television.
Venue
Storage Museum
Himmelgeister Str. 107
40225 Düsseldorf
The entry is free.
Registration is not required, but welcome.
Accessibility
-
German Sign Language (DGS)
-
With translation into spoken German
-
On-site assistance
-
Assistant dogs are welcome
-
Pick-up service: We are happy to pick you up from the nearest public transport station and can accompany you to the exhibition and event locations. Please contact us in advance to arrange this.
-
Early Entry: You are welcome to visit our event spaces before the official start time if needed. Please contact us in advance to arrange this.
-
The Storage Museum is fully accessible at ground level. Parking is available on-site, and assistance can be provided. Part of the path is cobblestone. The museum has a wheelchair-accessible, gender-neutral restroom. More information: https://storagemuseum.org/kontakt
![Rafael-Evitan Grombelka performs a simultaneous translation of Akiko Hada’s “The Fall of a Queen.” In the video, two young people dance to the subtitles: “Who wouldn’t want to sit on a throne? [ominous organ music].” Rafael-Evitan stands to the left of them and dances in the exact same manner.](/sites/default/files/styles/custom_desktop_crop/public/media/images/2026-05/Akiko%20Hada%203.jpg?h=fece7981&itok=zxU08R3v)
![ELA EIS, Miracle Whip [Befreit], 1979, Filmstill](/sites/default/files/styles/custom_desktop_crop/public/media/images/2024-04/Ela_Eis.jpg?h=ffef0b99&itok=FSVcjGDy "ELA EIS, Miracle Whip [Befreit], 1979, Filmstill, © ELA EIS, 2024")
